DIY Photo Canvas Wall & Book Review

I am super excited to show you this DIY canvas wall!!!  The possibilities are endless and the result is SO much fun.

Photo canvases are cool… and very expensive.  Even a small 12″ photo canvas can run around $40 each.  This canvas wall cost about $50 for EVERYTHING.  They are so much fun to change out and blow up those favorite photos.  I just LOVE photos when they are big!!!

But first the Book Review:

This book is about two things:  hope and love.  Hope and love are illustrated throughout the book using personal stories of motherhood.  Every mom should read this book because:  You are not alone;  You are enough.  Every word feels like it is written from her heart.
The insights and stories include those from the bible such as when Jesus stops the storm while the disciples are in the boat.  Each chapter takes these stories from the bible and relates them directly to your heart.  Another story included is the one of Mary and Martha.  The author reflects, “… sometimes being Martha doesn’t look like choosing something else over Jesus.  It simply looks like forgetting that He is always in the room.  … He knew that since the beginning of time, women have been trying to clean up their own messes, and He has to remind them that only Jesus can do that.”

I like that each chapter is structured well.  There are good reflection questions at the end of each section and space to write down your thoughts.  The entire book is 204 pages – a good length for a busy momma to sit and grab a chapter a day.

Project:

(The opposite wall from this contain two very tall windows… hence the glare on some of the canvases.   You don’t notice it much in person.)

This project is SUPER flexible and you could use any combination of canvas sizes you want.  I purchased the canvases at Michael’s.  They go on sale quite a few times per year.  For example, here is a link to the 16×20″.  It is one of my favorite sizes.  It also looks FABULOUS above a fireplace or couch with a 20×30 in the middle of the 16×20’s.  I guess I just love the 4:5 ratio for some reason.

If it were above my mantel, I would replace the white 20×30 photo in the middle with a family photograph.

Here is a link to Wall Art Placement on Pinterest for inspiration on your space!

Supplies you will need:
-canvases (for this project I used 6 –  16×20 canvases  and 1 – 20×30 canvas OR you can also cheat and use a piece of foam core from the Dollar Store which is exactly 20×30″)
-photo posters (purchased through Costco – the 16×20 posters are $6.99/each and the 20×30 poster is $9.99)
-Mod podge (1-2 ounces per canvas)
-foam brush (3″ wide)
-a lint free cloth (like microfiber or lens cloth, etc.)
-optional:  old tablecloth or piece of plastic to go underneath the project

1.  Have everything on hand in front of you.  The thin mod podge dries quickly, so you need to have everything sitting in front of you.  This should include the mod podge, foam brush, and…

the poster!  The canvases at Michael’s even come in black now – that might be really cool.  Just ignore the lid of glue in the photo…. that experiment didn’t work!

2.  Gently pour 1-2 ounces of mod podge all over the canvas.  It should be a thin stream.  Spread this with a foam brush all over the canvas into a thin later.  Take care to get the corners very well.   My lovely assistant is demonstrating below.

3.  Very carefully, place the poster down onto the glued canvas.  Line of the edges and corners.  Don’t worry, you still have a little while before it dries to pull the poster to make sure it is completely straight and flush on the sides with the canvas.

4.  Allow it to dry a few hours and it is ready to hang!  My canvases have a lip on the back, so I just need nails.  No need to add the metal hangers!   Now, you want to be really creative, put mod podge on TOP of the poster and lay a piece of real canvas on top.  Remove the canvas immediately.  The mod podge will form a canvas-like texture on top!

*I know real photo canvases wrap around the canvas.  I thought about this – but this method I did here was so easy and I am happy with it!